Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Price Target Lowered to $163.00 at Morgan Stanley

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) had its price target decreased by Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $163.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target indicates a potential upside of 11.02% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Leerink Partners dropped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.06.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

JNJ traded up $1.54 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $146.81. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,294,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,967,120. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company’s 50-day moving average is $148.10 and its 200-day moving average is $156.05. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The firm has a market cap of $353.47 billion, a PE ratio of 21.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22,438,500 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.29 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 42,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,280,000 after purchasing an additional 2,488 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 38.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,350,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $489,176,000 after buying an additional 932,477 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,374,397 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,100,427,000 after buying an additional 754,200 shares during the period. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 2nd quarter valued at $612,000. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 304,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,462,000 after acquiring an additional 6,033 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.